Seven Bridges Art Gala Starts New Tradition

The upper commons at was busy on Wednesday night, as the school held its first ever art gala for students.

The gala included a large cross section of art, including paintings, charcoal drawings, sculptures and digital artwork.

SoHyun Bae, one of three parents serving on a PTA-supported committee for the event, explained that in past years the students would display their work at the Chappaqua Library, alongside their peers at Robert E. Middle School. However, while Bell is down the street from the library, Seven Bridges is farther away and required a bus trip for the students. The gala is meant to make the art more accessible.

"It's a community event," Bae said.

Sixth grader Ana Amaya made a tin foil-based design in the shape of a heart and with a smily face.

"I'm so proud of her," said her father, Luis Amaya. He noted that she has been interested in art since she was little, and loves going to museums such as The Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim.

"It's great," Chappaqua school board member Randall Katchis said of the event. He noted the diversity of art styles present, and his son Garrett, a 6th grader, was among those working on a foil project.

Some students not only spent their class time on their projects, but their lunch and recess time as well. This was the case for fifth grader Kate Stelwagon, who worked on a drawing for making up her own superhero and on part of a color wheel group project. She said that it's a lot of work to get done because she wanted to make it as perfect as she can.

"We're so thrilled," said Barbara Leibovitz Hellman, one of the parent co-chairs, about the gala turnout.

The gala also marks the first year in which graduating 8th-grade classes will create murals, which will be permanately displayed at the school. Some were already placed on the highest walls of the commons.

Hellman's daughter, Rachel Hellman, was among those working on it. She and her classmates worked on a mural about different creation myths in the world. It took weeks to work on, she explained.